Building for Success? Ninth-Grade Course Failures and School Configurations

Authors

Sarah Ruth Morris, University of Arkansas, FayettevilleFollow
Sarah C. McKenzie, Office for Education PolicyFollow

Keywords

ninth grade, school configurations, course failures, school transitions

Abstract

This research study investigates the influence of school building configurations on the likelihood of ninth-grade student course failure. We analyze data from the 2017-18 and 2018-19 school years in Arkansas, and we categorize buildings as “Non-transitional,” “Focus,” or “Traditional.” Employing logistic regression models and interaction terms, our research finds that ninth-grade students are less likely to fail in “Focus” building configurations compared to “Non-transitional” and “Traditional” building configurations. Moreover, we find economically disadvantaged ninth-grade students are less likely to fail when they attend “Focus” buildings than “Non-transitional” or “Traditional” buildings. Our findings emphasize the importance of interventions and policy adjustments to address ninth-grade students’ academic challenges, especially in transitional years and buildings, and underscore the relationship between building environments and cultures on ninth-grade achievement.

Recommended Citation

Morris, Sarah Ruth and McKenzie, Sarah C. (2024) "Building for Success? Ninth-Grade Course Failures and School Configurations," Mid-Western Educational Researcher: Vol. 36: Iss. 1, Article 9.
Available at: https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/mwer/vol36/iss1/9